3. Share about a time you felt surprised.
I found a local group on Facebook that’s sole purpose is to just give away things for free. If you are spring cleaning or your kids outgrow their clothes or you are tired of your dining room table…you just list it in the local group to see if someone might want it. Since it is a super local group (within 5 miles), it’s typically a fast and easy exchange.
The other day I listed some makeup palettes that were given to me by a friend who had a ton of extra makeup. I didn’t need a handful of them so I listed them in the Facebook free group. One gal was claimed a couple and mentioned they were for her daughter who was turning nine soon. I put together a gift bag and added a few more things I thought a nine-year-old might enjoy. Maile had recently given me a bag of practically new stuffed animals to list on ebay and I remembered there were a couple I hadn’t listed yet.
I grabbed a rainbow unicorn Squishmallow, added it to the gift bag and left it on my porch for the mom to pick it up. When she left me a message later, I was surprised at how touched she was by the stuffed animal. As it turns out the little girl’s dad passed away a month ago. For her birthday a couple years back, he had given her the EXACT same stuffed animal in jumbo size. The night before she picked up the package from me, the little girl had asked her mom if they could find a mini version of the stuffed animal so that she could preserve the one her dad gave her and keep it from getting dirty. The mom said they actually shopped online to try to find it only to have it waiting for free on my doorstep. What are the odds of that!?!
I don’t know what was at play to make me spontaneously grab that specific stuffed animal when I could have just given her the makeup and she would have been perfectly happy with that. The mom said her daughter was on cloud nine after receiving the gift and she wholeheartedly believes it was from her dad. I told her I lost my dad as a little girl too and I know just how hard that is on a little heart. I am certain he had a hand in getting that unicorn in his daughter’s hands and I’m thrilled I got to be part of that surprise for her!
Now it’s your turn!
Choose a prompt, post it on your blog, and come back to add your name to the link list below. Be sure to sign up with the actual post URL and not just your basic blog URL (click on the title of your post for that URL). For good comment karma try to comment on the three blogs above your name!!
The Prompts:
1. Throwback Thursday: Choose a blog post from a previous August write about what has changed since then.
2. List 10 things you have learned from Facebook this week.
3. Share about a time you felt surprised.
4. Write a blog post inspired by the word: dream
5. Write a blog post inspired by your childhood neighborhood.
6. Write about a job you quit. What happened?
Cathy Kennedy says
Kat,
I don’t know if you’re a spiritual or religious person but I believe God uses us to minister to others at a precise moment. We don’t have to know why or understand it other than a Higher Power is at work. I’m happy you listened to instincts or the gentle urge that prompted you. You blessed another and in the process you were blessed. Isn’t that a grand feeling? Incidentally, I’ve heard of such websites and may use such sites when we’re ready to unload some of the things we no longer want. I linked up and hopefully I’m back in the routine of doing my usual stuff in Blogosphere again. Have a good day, my dear!
Mama Kat says
I definitely feel like something bigger than me was going on there, It’s funny how reluctant I am to call it a God moment because I’m always second-guessing if that’s really what it was. It was just too much of a coincidence to call it a coincidence though. I felt that!
Betsy says
That is beyond sweet of you. It is wonderful when you hear such gratitude from people instead of the typical entitlement.
John Holton says
What Cathy said…